Home Is the Hero

It was early morning, but Ottawa's Union Station was already jammed. The mayor was there with an air vice marshal, an Air Force band, a crowd of excited relatives. Some 200 Canadian airmen, from humble ground crewmen to two of Canada's top aces, were coming home after long tours overseas.

The 200 piled off the train, impatiently shuffled into line for the official twaddle of an official welcome. Suddenly they broke ranks and the real welcoming began. One airman appeared, brandishing an ice-cream cone. Another shouted: "Cones again!" Some of them had not seen an ice-cream cone in four years.

Royal Texans. Among them were two of the fighting Texans who crossed the Canadian border in such numbers before Pearl Harbor that the R.C.A.F. was sometimes called the "Royal Texas Air Force." Flight Lieut. "Tex" Barrick had thumbed his way from Odessa, Tex., to Canada, flown a Hurricane with the R.C.A.F., received a D.F.M. from the King. He intended to stay with the Canadians instead of joining the U.S. Army Air Forces. Said he: "You guys in Canada gave me a chance to fight, you spent a lot of money making me a pilot."

Another Texan turned Canadian was Air Gunner Raymond Carroll, veteran of 40 operational flights. Said he: "I married an English girl and as soon as this is over I'm going to settle in Vancouver." The crowd yelled approval.

Two Aces. Squadron Leader Bert Houle, of Massey, Ont., commanded the crack City of Windsor Squadron which fought in Malta, the Middle East, Britain. He was best known for getting two Germans in 15 seconds. He "squirted" at one, went underneath it, saw another, "squirted" him too. He wore the D.F.C.

Best known of all the repatriates was Canada's No. i ace, Flight Lieut. George ("Screwball") Beurling, who has 31 combat kills to his credit, a D.S.O., D.F.C. and a D.F.M. and bar. He returned briefly to Canada in 1942, then went back to England. Probably home now for good, he will teach deflection gunnery to Canada's fledglings. Said Spitfireman Beurling: "You couldn't get me in a bomber. They're too dangerous. . . . But the bombers are doing the real job. Fighter duels are just side shows. . , ."

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.